The enemy that brought about the Fall didn't wear a uniform. It didn't speak of jihads or crusades. It didn't rally extremists to the cause.
Immune to metal detectors, oblivious to terror status rankings, Shiva moved without sound and without fury.
The microscopic virus originated in southern Asia, somewhere between India and Pakistan. It manifested first as a deadly flu epidemic, but how it came about isn't entirely clear. Was it just a quirk of biology? A secret government project gone awry? A purposefully targeted biological weapon? No one ever found out for sure, and with the heightened tensions of the region, few wasted time looking for an answer.
Pakistani radicals almost immediately assumed it was a weaponized virus unleashed by India and retaliated with a nuclear bomb that sparked a devastating exchange between both countries that left hundreds of thousands dead within just a few hours.
Neither fire nor radiation brought humanity low, however. The blasts flung irradiated dust laced with the Shiva virus into the atmosphere, where it mutated into a new and more potent form.
Shiva 2 descended on Asia, spreading rapidly and sparking further nuclear exchanges between ancient enemies. As chaos overwhelmed the world, major cities in Europe and North America, including cities in the United States, fell prey to similar attacks. Civilization collapsed within a few weeks, leaving only a handful of sheltered areas habitable.
The Shiva virus mutated again and again, and stymied scientists who struggled to find a cure. Eventually, the virus reached its final incarnation: Shiva 7. Although it exhibited symptoms similar to those of its predecessors, Shiva 7 was non-lethal. Once the illness ran its course, the virus fell dormant within its host. But by the time Shiva 7 became the dominant strain of the virus, more than 90 percent of the world's population was gone. Nearly all of the survivors were infected with Shiva 7, but its effects seemed minimal for decades.
In subsequent generations, however, hidden effects of Shiva 7 became apparent. The virus caused mutations - some benign, some malignant, and some...quite strange, giving a few people the ability to manipulate the world around them. The virus had altered the fundamental genetic makeup of humanity.
Now, in the year 2154, you find yourself in the Grand Canyon Province, isolated from the rest of the fallen world. Hoover Dam, the last bastion of civilization in the region, has fallen to the Children of the Apocalypse and their allies after decades of conflict. The Enforcers and Techs, once servants of the reviled ruler of Hoover Dam, Alec Masters, now search for a new place in the world. In one of the last habitable regions on earth, humanity struggles to hold on to the last scraps of the old world. The savage Children of the Apocalypse, the wily Travelers, the militaristic Enforcers, the technology-friendly Techs, the nature-loving Vistas, and the mystical and altruistic Lightbearers all struggle for dominance.
They'll become your allies or enemies as you explore, share the adventure, and shape the future of Fallen Earth™.
